With a tenth place in the parallel giant slalom in Lech, Austria, ski star Adriana Jelinkova delivered a historic performance on Thursday. Never before has a Dutchman finished so high in a World Cup competition in alpine skiing.
Jelinkova – born in the Czech Republic, raised in the Netherlands and living in Austria – improved the performance of Angelika van der Kraats, who finished eleventh in the combination in Bad Kleinkirchheim in 1985 and thus held the Dutch record for a long time.
“It’s really cool, although I haven’t really thought about it yet. But of course that makes me proud. I’m especially happy to be able to ski again. I’ve had fun again for a long time,” said 25-year-old Jelinkova from Friday. Lech.
She was forced to stay out of skis for months after the previous season ended prematurely due to the corona pandemic. “The period after that was strange. I just sat at home and couldn’t train anymore. While there was just snow on the mountains.”
Jelinkova’s income fell sharply. Compared to the absolute world top, its resources are limited anyway. Her team consists of only two people: trainer René Rijsdijk and her mother.
“It is something I often forget, but I have a very small team compared to the world leaders,” she says. “Skiing is actually a second job for my trainer and my mother. They have suffered a lot financially.”
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Adriana Jelinkova at the World Cup in Lech. (Photo: ANP)
‘This is very special considering my small team and budget’
Last week, Jelinkova already came into action at the World Cup start in Levi, Finland, where she was unable to impress. “It was not good enough. The stress of the past period has cost a lot of energy,” she says.
“Moreover, it was not very good organizationally in Finland and it was very dark. The sun does not rise much in Lapland at this time of the year, while normally I get a huge boost from that.”
After the sporting and financial malaise of recent months, Jelinkova set her best result ever in Lech on Thursday. “When I am having a good time, I can bring out the best skiing within myself. And then you see that I am competing with the best in the world. Given my small team and small budget, that is very special.”
In two weeks’ time, Jelinkova will compete in the Giant Slalom World Cup in Courchevel, France.
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